Those Principales of Balete

By the time Miguel Lopez de Legazpi declared the Philippine islands as a colony of the kingdom of Spain, the barangay or pockets of kingdom throughout the archipelago were assimilated and their datus and families granted the privilege of continuing to govern their respective barangays. Those nobles became the cabezas de barangay (later called Teniente del Barrios) of the barangays and the gobernadorcillos (presidente municipales) of the pueblos or towns and were known then as the principalia.

The principalia were a privilege class as consequence of their nobility. They were exempted from paying tributes (taxes) even as they were allowed to have real property. They were distinguished by the titles they carry, i.e., the Dons and Doñas of the Spanish Philippines and the only ones who can vote or be voted upon as officials of the pueblos as in the case of a local election in May 8, 1893. 

Yet, it can be noted in the later time, the principalias were limited to only those first born males who at one time had served as officials of the pueblos. In Balete for instance, only those with titles "Capitan Pasado" or "Cabeza Actual" participated in the election for gobernadorcillo of May 8, 1893. It seems that they elected from among themselves their new leader in a manner akin to the Cardinals on conclave electing the new pope as can be gleaned from the ballot hereunder. 

Don Nicolas Guanco, a former capitan nominated for the position Gobernadorcillo
Don Eulalio Feliciano as his first choice and Don Romulo Legaspi

The rank of principalias were the easily accessible as they were often mentioned in the manuscripts that have been handed to us. When historian Renato Constantino bewailed about the dearth of written history about the remondatos, he was just stating a fact that the reality about the Philippine history is a history of those principales who later on were referred to as the illustrados. Balete is but a microcosm of this reality of Philippine history.